Insurance News Story

Halifax Report Shows UK Burglary Fears

Do you feel safe in your own home? Halifax Home Insurance has released the first of the four Peace of Mind reports that will be released this year. The first report, the Halifax Peace of Mind Index, is focused on the factors that make people feel safe and secure in their homes.

The Senior Claims Manager at Halifax Home Insurance, Martyn Foulds, has said that “Society has changed significantly in the past few decades. The aim of the Halifax Peace of Mind Campaign as a whole, and the Peace of Mind Index as the crux of this, is to get to the core of what makes British people feel safe in the home”.

The Peace of Mind Index, is the result of the analysis of research commissioned by Halifax Home Insurance and data from the British Crime Survey. The report shows that 57.47% of all respondents, never feel unsafe when they are at home. That leaves a large percentage that have felt unsafe in their own home. Respondents to the Survey listed burglary as the greatest threat to their property ( 63.34% ).

Figures from the British Crime Survey interviews, have shown that police recorded domestic burglaries, during the period from July to September 2008, have increased by 4% on the previous year. That is 69,700 reported domestic burglaries in just 3 months.

So what makes us feel safe when we are at home? 75% of the respondents to the Halifax Home Insurance survey, reported that having security locks on all doors and windows made them feel safe while at home. Having other people with them in their home and a land line telephone were also in the top three of the available choices. Other measure that make people feel safer are Neighbourhood Watch schemes, security lighting and having a spy hole in their door.